Land Rover Owner February 2020

The new Defender has been touring the UK’s main dealer network and, having read quite a few reports, the response has generally been positive. Now folk have seen it in the flesh they’re really warming to it. But there are still those who don’t like it – and the recent unveiling in Los Angeles brought a mixed reaction from enthusiasts seeing it up close for the first time. The stumbling point is the name – if it had been called anything else, it would have been embraced. Having now had the opportunity to experience the new vehicle on- and off-road, I can confirm it’s certainly worthy of the Land Rover badge. And if the company wants to call it a Defender, who are we to moan? It’s a great vehicle and should sell…

1st prize BENJAMIN BECKER WINS A 44-PIECE SEALEY SCREWDRIVER, HEX KEY & BIT SET ‘Benjamin enjoys his Defender in the French Jura mountains. It’s an idyllic scene, beautifully captured.’ NEIL WATTERSON, EDITOR 2nd prize DAN VAN ASCH WINS A SEALEY LARGE ANGLED FLO-THRU BRUSH ‘I hope Dan has a sledge in the back of his 1999 300Tdi Defender – New Zealand’s Torlesse Range looks great for sliding.’ NEIL WATTERSON, EDITOR…

For stockists, to order a free catalogue, or to buy online, go to sealey.co.uk 1st PRIZE Sealey Rechargeable 360° Slim Inspection Lamp (LED3604UV) LIST PRICE £74.34 2nd PRIZE Sealey Rechargeable Portable 20W COB Floodlight & Power Bank (LED184) LIST PRICE £71.94 For a chance to see one of your photos in print, send it to wolr@LRO.com. Include a description of the vehicle and where the photo was taken, along with the names of anyone in it. Please send the biggest image file sizes you have. This issue, first-placed Benjamin Becker wins a 44-piece Sealey Screwdriver, Hex Key & Bit Set. Second prize,a Sealey Large Angled Flo-Thru Brush with 1.7m Telescopic Handle, goes to Dan Van Asch.…

The low sun is glinting through the trees, flooding the wet track in dappled light. We’re bearing down rapidly on a corner. A lighter patch on the ground suggests ice; we hit it at speed and ask the Defender’s tyres to give everything they can. There’s a slight wiggle as they briefly lose grip, and we roar off down the straight. I’m in one of the first uncamouflaged new Defenders in the wild – a £78,800 Defender X – at Land Rover’s Gaydon proving ground. We’re on the Developing World track; a crushed stone affair that resembles many a farm track and greenlane in the UK, and many unmade roads overseas – but we’re travelling at speeds far in excess of those you’d normally drive along them; it’s like we’re in…

Episode one of this brand-new spin-off series (9pm, Monday 6 January on the Discovery Channel) sees Wheeler Dealer Mike Brewer and ex-Formula 1 mechanic Marc ‘Elvis’ Priestley taking on the first of seven challenges. ‘We don’t do anything in this series you can’t do at home with a basic set of tools and a bit of skill’MIKE BREWER ‘We don’t do anything in this series that you can’t do at home with a basic set of tools and a bit of skill. We teach people how to do that,’ says Brewer. The first episode is of particular interest to LRO readers because it shows how an ex-British Army serviceman, Tony, finally achieves his goal of getting behind the wheel of a Series IIA of his own. The steps the presenters have to go…

A list of the funniest TV shows of recent years would surely have to include Travels with my Father, the hilarious Netflix series that stars comedian Jack Whitehall and his dad, Michael. Land Rover has tapped into the duo’s popularity by asking them to star in a youtube video of a dramatic demo of the Tow Assist technology. Land Rover set up what could be called the ultimate test – a race against the tide reversing a 22-foot Airstream caravan along a narrow causeway on Jersey. Tow Assist lets you see what’s happening behind you using cameras; and you steer using the knob on the centre console, rather than flailing your arms around on the steering wheel. See how Jack, with plenty of, er, encouragement from Michael, gets on at: youtube. com/watch?v=m4fzr7c5QoU. So far as…